


Melancholia

by catcher in the light (journeycat)



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Angst, F/M, Unrequited Love, Weddings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-29
Updated: 2016-10-29
Packaged: 2018-08-27 16:08:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 549
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8408062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/journeycat/pseuds/catcher%20in%20the%20light
Summary: Weddings are supposed to be a merry occasion, but Jakob can only feel regret.





	

She had never looked so lovely to him. Her wild hair was pinned back, with a few curls fighting free, and the huge bow on the back of her wedding gown was styled in such a way to look like shimmering dragon wings. She had all the blushing prettiness of a bride, and still she nervously ran her hands down her dress to smooth out wrinkles that weren’t there. He would have told her she was perfect in every way, if only she had asked.

“Stop that, milady,” Jakob said. “You look wonderful, but if you keep fretting you’ll mess everything up, and Felicia and Lady Elise worked so hard on your hair and makeup that they will surely weep.”

“I know they did,” Corrin said. “I’ll never be able to pay them back for making me look so good. But I don’t think I can pull it off—I just look like a fraud.”

“Nonsense. I would never serve a fraudulent woman.”

She laughed. “No, I suppose not. You’re far too honest for that.”

_Not honest enough_ , he thought, but only smiled and offered her his arm. “Come along, now. Prince—ah, that is, _King_ Xander is waiting for his bride most anxiously. It won’t do to be late to your own wedding.”

Corrin giggled. “I suppose not. Very well, let’s go. Oh, I’m so nervous, what will I do?”

She clung to him sweetly as he escorted her from her rooms to the doors of the ballroom. Along the way, they were joined by Elise and Camilla, who fluttered and giggled over her, and Kaze who smiled gently with quiet, platonic adoration, and Felicia close to tears because she almost dropped the ten-tier wedding cake earlier. And Corrin laughed and blushed at their comments, and pretended she wasn’t afraid, but she did not let go of Jakob’s arm with her trembling hand.

They slipped ahead of them through the doors, Camilla blowing a kiss behind her. Jakob caught a glimpse of Xander at the far end of the aisle, fidgeting at the altar. Golden-haired and splendid in his armor, he looked every part the king. A good man who never treated Jakob with anything less than courtesy and respect, who earned the love of his people through dignity and earnest promise, and whose devotion to Corrin was plain for the world to see.

And that was why Jakob could not hate him, though he wanted to, though it would make him feel better. He was more worthy of a noble princess than he was, for he was a mere servant to Corrin’s draconian royal. It was a wrenching feeling, this melancholy tinged with envy that had no outlet, because his own love for her prevented him from ever leaving her side.

“Thank you for staying with me through all of this,” Corrin said softly. “Not just the wedding, but all the way back to the beginning when I was just an ignorant hostage in the Northern Fortress waiting for a miracle. You are as much my family as any of them, so please continue to put up with me from now on, too. You are truly my greatest friend.”

Jakob kissed her fingers, a little gesture that meant so much, and bowed. “I live to serve, milady.”


End file.
